Saturday, September 09, 2006

How to stay motivated, or, How to avoid getting confused

I just wanted to thank everyone for writing in and wishing my family and I all the great things! This is awesome and I am so very grateful to have such good people behind me and on board here.

All the e mails I get make it impossible to reply so I hope this does not seem insensitive. I am grateful! Thank you again and again!

And for those who have been asking, yes, our baby girl is doing great and I am sleeping better than ever because I get to bed earlier than ever!

I used to crash around 12 - 1 AM and sleep 5 hours a night on average. Now I am in bed by 11 pm the latest! ha ha

One thing I am missing out on is any wrestling or grappling, but, this is where priorities come in and there are times when we must put things on the back burner. My training is still in high gear and once things settle down a bit I can get back on the mat and expand my knowledge in the world of combat!

I will be attending a Krav Maga 30 hour course in November though, by one of the most knowledgeable coaches I have ever spoke with, soon to meet, Moni Aizik. Moni has trained top level UFC and Pride fighters such as Carlos Newton and has trained countless military and federal law enforcement personnel plus many, many more people around the world his style of Commando Krav Maga.

30 hours in 3 days and it will be amazing, I will keep you posted!

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I’ve got a few questions sent my way that I grabbed. This might be the best way for me to answer e mails, so I'll do my best here with the many I get....

Question 1:

Hello Zach. I am a 16 year old athlete with many athletic interests, with my ultimate goal of being in the UFC, and my immediate goal being placing in the Connecticut Golden Gloves. I just recently ordered your book Gladiator Training, along with Pavel's books the Naked Warrior and Bullet Proof Abs, having already obtained Rings & Kettlebells with DVD to go along with them.

My question is how should I effectively construct hybrid workouts of these multiple training methods and/or set aside days to do specific training?

My boxing schedule is 3-5 days a week, with powerlifting training 2 days a week using Louie Simmons methods (for now I stay away from heavy Deadlifts/Squats do to a minor back injury).

*Please note this is only a rough schedule, with a lot of flexibility in pertinence to what to do on what days.

I thoroughly believe in training withouta huge emphasis on concentric/eccentric days, and worrying about overtraining. Basically, I believe if you listen to your body you shouldn't over train. However with the school year starting and me becoming more regimented in my training while incorporating all of these different aspects, I'm afraid I may find myself subject to overtraining.

I suppose essentially what I am asking is; do you have any tips on periodization; what training methods combine well on the same day; mixing training for your sport with conditioning; avoiding overtraining while sticking to a program and progressing, etc.

I've been working out for 2 years now (not counting the tens years I spent as a kid getting my black belt in karate) and haven't really found a training style that's suits nor have I found a really good groove to get into, and help you give would be greatly appreciated.

Zach Byrne, 16 Stamford, Connecticut

Answer:

Zach (GREAT name by the way :)…..

The best bet, with all your training, is not to overanalyze, seriously. You picked up some great stuff with great information and it’s easy to get overwhelmed or confused. I admire you for being so young and so passionate and goal oriented. Better yet, you are ACTION oriented so you will achieve your goals!

With school and your boxing training, yes, you will be busy, and this is why I REALLY like your idea of listening to your body. This is the best way to train and if done with dedication and true self honesty, it can be the best way to train.

By honesty I mean, going easy when you feel beat up, as opposed to going easy because you’re lazy. You are obviously not lazy, so this, in conjunction with a method I learned from James Smith, the high – low method, will work great.

High low is explained in detail in my manual, but for the sake of simplicity, high is days of boxing and strength training, low is days of lighter work. Never perform two high days in a row to optimize recovery.

You can do plenty fine with two full body workouts per week. They can both focus on strength and power, or, if you feel conditioning is poor, one of them can be a day of complexes and circuits for energy system training.

2) Ultimate Combat Kit – which has been beefed up to packaging ALL of my info into one, it’s the Mother of all products! http://ultimatecombatkit.com/ – it’s worth well over $ 1,000, and you can get it for a fraction of the actual value, that is, before I come to my senses and raise the price!

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Until the next time, keep training smart & hard and stay motivated!

If you don't love training then you'll always be in average shape. You must have a passion for training and a love for all this "insanity" if you want results.

Sometimes the best way to stoke the fire is by changing the scenery. If you always train at the same gym or in your garage, then go somewhere else and train. I used to do this a lot when I was getting sick of the local gyms.

I found the new atmosphere and all the people around me who were sizing me up in the corner of their eye was motivating me to go heavier and push the intensity up a few nothces.

In fact, I might take a ride soon enough to a hard core gym not too far away and take advantage of their 200 lb dumbbells and their power rack :)

Gotta keep the edge or the wolves will eventually catch up and eat you alive. I prefer to eb the hunter, not the hunted!

keep it real!

--Zach--

p.s. - Getting your hands on my latest kit will definitely stoke the fire! At the least, skip a few cups of coffee and see where the REAL s**t goes down, at http://undergroundstrengthcoach.com - sissies, cry babies and whiners are NOT welcome. It's a place reserved only for bad SOB's!!